The present invention relates to shields for sight gauges. It finds particular application in connection with the protection of sight gauges used in association with urns containing coffee or other liquids that are to be dispensed through an associated faucet.
Sight gauges for urns and the like are used to indicate the level of liquid in the urn and are provided in the form of an elongated tubular glass or polymeric member in fluid communication with the urn and secured adjacent an outer wall thereof and/or to the dispensing faucet thereof in a vertical orientation for convenient operator viewing. The tubular member is surrounded by a protective metal or plastic gauge shield that supports the tubular member and protects same against breakage during use and during shipping/handling of the urn.
To permit viewing of the tubular gauge member, prior gauge shields have included at least one slot formed through a wall thereof. The slot is formed by milling or is defined by a die during an extrusion process if the gauge shield is an extruded member. Known milled sight gauge shields have been deemed suboptimal in terms of cost for certain applications. Other lower-cost shields, e.g., extruded polymeric gauge shields, have been found to lack the desired aesthetics in that they do not resemble traditional milled shields.
It has been deemed desirable to provide a molded polymeric sight gauge shield that exhibits the desired aesthetics and performance characteristics with associated low-cost.